


The First Lesson

by GofyTomcat1



Category: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), Star Wars: Rebellion Era - All Media Types
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-23
Updated: 2020-07-23
Packaged: 2021-03-05 10:40:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25469428
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GofyTomcat1/pseuds/GofyTomcat1
Summary: A former ARC Trooper of the Republic learns there’s more to war than tactics and combat, and more to his new comrades-in-arms than is first apparent.Who better to teach him than Jyn Erso?"Dark Forces" compliant, set a few months after "The Scarif Extraction." Currently a One-Shot, might get expanded upon later.





	The First Lesson

ARC-6867, formerly designated Commander Callum, stands before his commanding officer, who glares back at him with cold and bitter eyes. A look of scorn flickers across her face, and the old soldier braces himself for what he can only imagine to be a reprimand. 

One he knows he totally deserves. 

"You're toeing a fine line, Commander," Jyn says coldly. "You're relieved of command."

"With respect,” Callum starts, “I completed the mission, Ma'am. Our forces won the battle."

Jyn only scoffs back at him. "For a Clone whose inhibitor chip was removed, Callum, you sure act like a Stormtrooper."

Callum’s eyes narrow into daggers. For a Clone, such an accusation is a bitter insult, one that is not normally taken lightly. However, given his present circumstances, there is little he can say to deflect her scathing remarks.

"With respect, Ma'am, I followed my orders to the letter.My squad..."

Jyn cuts the ARC Trooper off before he can continue. "Abandoned the rest of your squad... and Captain Andor... under heavy suppressive fire while your Clones carried the battle themselves. They were nearly wiped out, and Cassian almost died to your so-called tactics." She’s raised her voice now, and her short stature is now raised to its full height. Callum staggers back, intimidated by his commander’s show of force.

"It's what my training taught me,” he stammers uneasily. “You have to admit, Ma’am, it's produced results thus far." This isn’t a lie. Since joining Jyn’s Stardust Cell, the ARC troopers of Wildcat Squad have blazed their way through Imperial lines with adamant ferocity, cutting Imperial logistics lines, disturbing the chain of command, and providing permanent diversions that force the Imperials away from the core of the cell’s covert operations.

Yet in spite of all this, Jyn isn’t buying Callum’s desperate attempts at an explanation. "And how many good men, men you claim to call your 'brothers', have to die before you realize this isn't the Clone Wars anymore? How many of my men have to be sacrificed before you realize the cost of those ‘results?’ I’ll give you a hint, Commander: it’s high."

"Yes, Ma'am," Callum replies, lowering his head. Admittedly, he hasn’t always looked over the casualty reports, or gone to see the wounded after a battle’s end. Whether it’s an absence of time, or a lack of a genuine connection with the non-Clone members of his unit, he cannot tell, but he feels a sense of guilt wash over him as he recalls these failures.

"You have already cost this cell a great many lives, Commander. Not just on this mission, but on countless others." Jyn’s words cut through him like a blaster bolt, but the Clone remains at attention. He’s been trained to accept his punishment, however harsh it might be. As a former soldier of the Grand Army of the Republic, he’s taken his fair share of criticism and accusation in the past. Yet somehow… somehow the words coming from Jyn Erso feel _different,_ in a way the Clone cannot begin to understand.

"No one mourns their loss more than I, Captain Erso, and I resent..." Callum stammers. It’s a futile protest, a weak excuse at best, but he has to say something. In his own mind, he has been accused of treason, and that is something he cannot allow to stand.

As expected, Jyn doesn’t buy it. "You _resent_?! Damn your stubborn impudence, sir! I will not lose men to no better cause than the satisfaction of their own vanity!"

"So I should leave the Rebellion?" Callum asks. He doesn’t like to think about it, but the thought comes nonetheless. Not for the first time, he wishes he still had his inhibitor chip to keep his emotions in check. It would make this dressing-down so much less _draining_.

Jyn shakes her head. "If you want to be a coward, Commander, then by all means feel free," she says coldly.

"What else can I do?" he asks her. 

She sighs, and her voice lowers. "Listen to your men. Don't sacrifice them needlessly, or assume that your past training will be enough. And above all, know when you're outnumbered and need to fall back. Your desire to relive past victories will not serve you well in the Rebellion."

"I understand, Ma'am."

"Good,” she tells him. “However, in light of recent events, I feel it necessary to relieve you of command of your ARC troopers."

"Take away my brothers? How can you...?" He starts to protest, but Jyn’s glare silences him once more.

"Welcome to the Rebellion, Callum,” Jyn informs him, her voice just as impersonal as before. You may think you're still a commander of the GAR, but this isn’t the Republic, and you aren’t an officer here. Until I determine otherwise, you're merely a rebel like the rest of us. And until you've earned our trust, sir, that is all you're going to be . Do you understand me?"

  
Callum can only nod. Saying something will only make his humiliation worse.

"I understand that the men formerly under Captain Andor’s command were somewhat ill-disciplined, would you concur, Commander?”  
  
“Yes, Ma’am.”

“They are now under your command,” Jyn says simply. You'll hold a sergeant's rank, and you'll be given the same treatment as any other man in this cell."  
  
“I thought you believed me to be unfit for command?” Callum stammers. “Why should I be asked to lead these men? I’ll only get them killed. With all due respect, Lieutenant, I’d be better off with my own men, operating behind the lines.”  
  
“You’ve served with your ARC troopers since the Clone Wars, Commander,” Jyn explains. “You know them, trust them, understand them. But these men? They don’t have anyone to lead them, to give them guidance and a sense of purpose. Above all, they’ll need someone with your experience to help them face their first crucible of combat.”

"Yes, Ma'am."

"The Alliance is at war, Callum. We cannot afford to give seniority to those who do not pull their weight, or feed men who cannot contribute something to our cause. You will make something of these men or _you_ will answer for it."

"And how can I do that?" the ARC Trooper asks.

“Bond with your men. Come to know them as you would know your own. Learn their fears, their hopes, their dreams, their aspirations. Show me any man under my command and I’ll be able to tell you those things, or find a man that can tell you. We are not clones here, Callum. We are individuals, with our own reasons for joining this fight. If you can understand those things, your men will come to trust you, and they will follow you until the end.”  
  
“Thank you, Lieutenant,” Callum nods. “I will take heed of what you have taught me.”  
  


“You’d better,” Jyn informs him. 


End file.
